Dr. Amara Pope & Sean Jones

Finding Your Bliss

This week on Finding Your Bliss we have a show devoted to music. Educator, marketing genius and artist, Dr. Amara Pope is here to talk about how she helps champion representation in the Canadian music industry, which is beautifully exemplified in her amazing TEDx Talk. With over a decade of experience in marketing, brand management, and digital media across several industries, Dr. Amara Pope also holds a Ph.D. in Media studies from Western University. Her Ph.D research is fascinating. It's focused on the intersections of media, culture and race, particularly within popular music and digital media. Dr. Pope also earned a Master’s in Communication Studies from Wilfrid Laurier University and completed a Joint Honours Bachelor’s Degree in Rhetoric and Professional Writing and Fine Arts with a Digital Media Specialization from the University of Waterloo. She is dedicated to amplifying underrepresented voices in Canada and fostering diversity, which as mentioned, is beautifully exemplified in her TEDx Talk. She has delivered impactful lectures at prestigious universities, such as the University of Southern California, and more. She has also spoken at conferences and served as a guest panelist all across Canada. Her insights have been featured in notable media outlets including CTV, CBC, iHeart Radio, Global Television, NBC and others. When not immersed in her professional pursuits, Dr. Pope enjoys weightlifting and experimenting with oil, acrylic and mixed-media painting. Also on the program, we have Juno Award-winning R&B, Soul, and Pop singer Sean Jones. As he puts it, “It's been a long time…but it always feels good to come home.” Sean Jones is referring to the kind of ’90s inspired R&B music he made with the highly successful boy band, "In Essence." The group rose to fame in the early 90’s with the hits, "Friend Of Mine," "IE IE" and "You Will Never Find" and received worldwide recognition for their ability to combine Rap, Pop, and R&B with exciting performances. In 2004, "In Essence" won a Juno Award for their debut album before breaking up in 2006. Post break up, Jones took an interest in songwriting and producing. Over the next ten years, he put together a catalogue of songs that stretched in genre from soft rock to Motown Revival. It was his take on soulful classics however, that would eventually land him a unique and incredible opportunity to showcase his skills. In 2015, Sean became the first artist to secure a solo summer residency at the historic Casa Loma in downtown Toronto. The Monday night revue titled “Soul In The City” gave Jones and his nine-piece band, "The Righteous Echo," the chance to showcase his original songs, as well as their take on popular old school hits. The show was also a wonderful opportunity to give emerging artists a stage to share their talents. “Soul In The City,” through Jones' hard work and tenacity, grew to 1000+ people every Monday night. The overwhelming success he had with that residency led to WestJet, Canada’s second-largest airline, handpicking Sean to create a musical experience for the passengers aboard their flights. For the project titled, “The WestJet Boarding Sessions,” Jones recorded new versions of classic Canadian hits, such as “These Eyes” by The Guess Who, “The Weight” by The Band, and “Angel” by Sarah McLachlan and flew across Canada to interview some of these cherished musical icons. His latest album, has a familiar sound that many have not heard from him in almost 15 years. Jones’ most recent album, “Weekend Lover” features a set of songs that are reminiscent of 90’s R&B, something Jones is very familiar with. Says Jones: “Growing up, my parents played all the classics, Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, The Supremes…the list goes on and on. I loved all of it then and to this day. However, the music of the late ’80s and ’90s is what sparked my interest in performing. There was something about the musical energy of that time. The R&B/Pop son ...